The Premier League has CAVED INTO demands from FIFA that the January transfer window not open until Saturday.

The reason is that the last day of the month, January 31, falls on a Saturday when there is a full fixture list.

With Sunday not classified as a business day, that pushes back the close of the window to Monday, February 2 at 11pm.

Uefa have ruled that to avoid any major league gaining a competitive advantage, all transfer windows should run for a maximum of 31 days.

A Premier League spokesman confirmed: "This is about the FIFA Transfer Matching System (TMS) - the system through which all international transfers have to be registered.

"TMS can only be open for 31 days in the winter window (FIFA rules). We aligned our window with that in mind."